Sunlight
by MadameLovely
Summary: We reiterate the events of Treasure Planet up until we meet Nova, a shy sunmaid who was caught in the relentless waves of the star, Pellucid. Relationships develop, betrayal ensues, and heroes are born. No infringement intended; I only own Nova. Just read it :P
1. Chapter 1

Sunlight

01: Launch

WARNING: I try to use elegant wording to summarize this part, but it's necessary that I reiterate some of the movie. If you want to, just skip to chapters 3 or 4, which lead up to my OC.

Jim and Dr. Delbert Doppler enter the Space Port, Jim silently bathing in the sunlight and sweaty smells of fellow spacers. Doppler rammed into the back of Jim, having been rambling about how close he and Jim will no doubt be after the voyage. Months upon months they would be traveling for the infamous, never discovered Treasure Planet.

Since the day Jim had found that ugly salamander Billy Bones, and his home and mother's business had been burned to the ground, Jim fantasized about nothing but finding this beautiful planet and making everything up to his ragged yet gorgeous mother.

It was still a wonder to him how such a tired woman could deal with a trouble-maker like him for so long, always coming to his rescue, convincing everyone he really didn't deserve to spend his childhood in juvenile detention. He was thoroughly convinced that the only one who's opinion mattered was his mother's, and he was going to prove all her pushing was going to pay off.

And they would have a home again.

Jim glared back at a haggard Doppler. "Look, let's just find the ship, OK?"

They had to stop and ask for directions; the space port was an awful big area up close, despite how small it looks so far away.

"It's the suit, isn't it?" Doppler trudged behind, trying to keep up with his youthful, less encumbered companion. "I should not have listed to that pushy, two-headed sales woman! This one said it fit, that one said it was my color, I didn't know what to do I get so flustered! OH!"

Once again, Doppler's suit made forceful contact with Jim's back, earning yet another discerning look from the younger fellow.

"Oh, Jim, look! The RLS Legacy!" Doppler gestured dramatically at their ship, allowing Jim to continue leading the way; if he'd bothered, he would slow them both down anyway.

"How cool is this?" he asked, mainly to himself, as if speaking of it aloud made it more real. While distracted, he accidentally stepped on a balloon-like alien's foot… foot? Possibly. "Sorry about that. I didn't-"

The alien turned violently around and stood threateningly in front of Jim, lifting his fists...? in the air, as if pushing Jim to fight him for hurting him.

Doppler stepped in front of Jim, to his dismay, and said, "Let me handle this." Using different methods to create raspberry noises, the Doctor seemed to be communicating with the creature. The alien laughed (so Jim assumed) and walked off. "I'm quite fluent in Flatuela, Jim! Took two years of it in high school!" Doppler walks off confidently, happy to have actually impressed the young lad.

"Flatula," Jim repeats, a smirk appearing on his face and a hand running through his hair. "Cool."

The ventured further along the ship's deck until a rock-creature dressed in fancy dreads is in front of them, eying the crew as if manning the ship- like a captain.

"Good morning, Captain! Everything… ship-shape!"

The rock creature turned to them, smiling, and responded, "Ship-shape indeed. But I'm not the captain. The captain is… aloft." He gestured upwards toward the sail, where a cat-like woman spun and leapt from one end to another, finally landing perfect on the deck.

The Doctor's helmet hit him in the face, as if he was shocked by the captain's display.

"Mr. Arrow, I've checked this miserable ship from stem to stern and as usual…. It's spot on. Do you get nothing wrong?" she questioned lightly, a sweet smile on her feline face.

"You flatter me, Captain," said Mr. Arrow, a kind smile in return.

The Captain stepped in front of the young spacer and the Doctor in the ridiculous suit. "Ah, Dr. Doppler I presume?" She leaned forward, ignoring his sputtering to introduce himself. "Hello?" she began knocking on his helmet. "Can you hear me?"

"Why yes I can stop that banging!" The Doctor demanded, stepping back angrily. While pulling off his helmet so the woman couldn't pester him any longer, she found a new way by turning him around.

"Doctor, if I may, this works better when it's right way up and… plugged in! Lovely, there you go!"

"If you don't mind I can manage my own plugging, thank you!" Even more frustrated, he unplugged his suit.

Mischievous smile waning, she placed a hand on herself. "I'm Captain Amelia. Lately I've had a few run-ins with the Procyan Armada, but I won't bore you with my scares. And you've met my Officer, Mr. Arrow. Sterling, dependable, honest, tough, brave and true!"

"Please, Captain…"

"Oh, shut up, Arrow. You know I don't mean a word of it." She winked impishly up at her officer.

Clearing his throat awkwardly, Doppler said, "Excuse me! I hate to interrupt this lovely… banter but I'd like to introduce Jim Hawkins. You see, Jim is the boy who found the treasure-"

Before he could finish, Amelia grabbed Doppler's muzzle forcefully and glanced around at the deck hands, who suspiciously glanced back before continuing with their work. "I would like a word with you in my stateroom."

In an elegant room in the back of the ship, Amelia first faced Arrow briefly before looking at Delbert. "Doctor, to muse and blabber about a treasure map about this particular crew demonstrates a level ineptitude bordering upon the imbecilic."

Delbert was taken aback by being called something so scandalous. "Imbecilic, you say? Foolishness, I've got-"

Amelia shrugged him off. "May I see the map please?"

Still annoyed, Delbert looked upon Jim, who shrugged in return. Taking a hand out of his jacket pocket, he tossed the golden orb at the captain. "Here."

Amelia studied the map, turning it round to observe every inch. "Hm, fascinating!" Glancing up at Jim, her smile faded and a stern look crossed her. "Mr. Hawkins," she began, locking the map away. "From now on, I would like for you to refer me as "Captain" or "ma'am". Am I clear?"

Jim rolled his eyes and sighed disobediently.

"Mr. Hawkins?"

"Yes, ma'am," Jim snarked.

"Good." Turning back to them, she said, "Mr. Arrow please escort these neophytes to the galley. Mr. Hawkins will be working under the cook, Mr. Silver!"

Jim, briefly distracted, looked up at the Captain astonished. "Wh-what? The cook!"

After a brief and awkward introduction, Arrow and Doppler left for the launch. Jim, wary of his cyborg companion, grabbed a fruit and took a small bite. Although he had a short conversation with the man, as if he was attempting to get some type of truth out of him, he was glad to hear the man hadn't a clue what he was talking about when referring to his planet or Billy Bones.

And they took off.


	2. Chapter 2

Sunlight

02: Super Nova

After a night out in a solar boat, Jim and Silver return to the ship, giddy from their adventure.

They had a short conversation, at which point they got comfortable in the little dingy, Jim's head resting on Silver's shoulder.

Then the Legacy rocked violently, sending Jim almost flying forward.

"What the devil!"

Jim and Silver rushed up the stairs, looking around to find the culprit of the ship's sudden rocking.

"The star Pellucid… it's gone supernova!" Doppler hollered.

"Evasive action, Mr. Turnbuckle!" demanded Amelia.

"Aye-aye, Captain." Turnbuckle attempted to turn the ship the other direction.

Asteroids began shooting out from the star, slicing through the sails to Amelia's shock and dismay.

"All hands, fasten your safety lines!"

"Mr. Arrow- lower those sails!"

"Aye, Captain. You heard her, men! Lower all sails!"

Jim and Silver climbed up to assist the other crewmates in fastening the sails down. An asteroid launched at Silver, almost sending him plummeting below. Jim, in a matter of panic, grabbed hold of the bigger man's line and pulled him up again.

"Thanks, Jimbo."

Suddenly, a force made everyone stop in their tracks, as the star was rolling toward them, almost hitting the ship…

But for some odd reason, it was launching itself backwards.

Until everyone realized that a black hole had taken its place.

"We're bein' pulled in!" Turnbuckle yelled, releasing the wheel in a futile attempt to keep the ship from being sucked in.

"Oh no we don't!" Amelia shouted, shoving past the man in order to take control.

Wave upon wave hit them, causing the ship to rock sporadically this way and that.

"Blast these waves! They're suffusedly eratic!"

"No, Captain! They're not eratic at all," Doppler argued. "There's another one in precisely fourty-one-point-two seconds, followed by the biggest magilla of them all!"

The Captain's eyes widened as an idea occurred to her. "Of course! We can ride those waves right out of here! Brilliant, Doctor!"

"All sails secured, Captain!" Arrow shouted up to her.

"Good! Now lower them again!"

Confused, he simply answered, "Aye," before turning back to his crew. "You heard her- lower those sails!"

The crew mumbled and grumbled, but followed with the orders.

"Mr. Hawkins," Amelia called. "I want you to make sure all lines are secure!"

"Aye, Captain!" Jim set off to do his duty, hoping to get this one thing right.

"Here it comes!" hollered the Doctor. "Everyone hold on!"

Silver held Jim close, pressed against a pillar, closing their eyes for impact.

And as the black hole exploded, they flew in the opposite direction into the safety of space.

Amelia met with Jim and Silver, followed by Doppler, to congratulate Jim on a job well done.

"Head count, Mr. Arrow?"

The ship stayed quiet as they waited for the Officer's roll call.

"Mr. Arrow?"

Scroop wheedled through the crowd, Mr. Arrow's hat in his hands. "I'm afraid… Mr. Arrow… has been lost." He handed the hat to the captain. "His lifeline was not secure…"

The crew glared at Jim, he muttered, "No! I checked them all!" He ran back to where the lines lay, noticing one was missing. "I swear, I checked them all…" He looked back at the captain, who only looked grief-stricken and disappointed.

"Arrow was… a fine spacer… finer than ever us could ever be…" She turned toward her stateroom, head lowered.

Jim simply ran off, embarrassed and disappointed with himself.

Silver, pipe in hand, found Jim sitting in the rigging, fiddling with loose rope.

"It weren't your fault, you know?" Taking a hit, he continued, "why if it weren't for you, half the crew would be spinnin' in the black abyss-"

Throwing the rope, he jumped from the rigging and glared at Silver. "Don't you get it? I screwed up!" He stomped away in his rage. "I mean, I thought for two seconds I could do something right! But-" Running his hand through his hair, frustrated, he simply said. "Forget it… forget it…"

Silver reached over and forced Jim to turn around, noticing his face was slightly swollen from tears. "Now, you listen to me, James Hawkins!"

Jim stared up at Silver, tears brimming his eyes.

"You got the makin' of greatness in ya. But ya gotta take the helm and chart ya own course! Well, I hope I'm there, catchin' some of the light comin' off your sails."

Emotional, Jim leans his head against Silver's big belly, as if in defeat. Silver wrapped his arms around the boy briefly before shoving him away. "Jim, I better be gettin' about to my watch. And you, to bed." He shoved Jim away toward the galley below.

"I want to stay up just a little longer." Jim turned back one last time to smile at Silver before going up one more level of the deck, leaning against the rail, feeling better.

And that's when he saw it.

At first, it looked like a slow moving shooting star. Then, upon close inspection, he saw a shape- of a person.


	3. Chapter 3

Sunlight

03: Found

"Silver, Silver!" Jim yelled hysterically. "Come quick!"

Silver trudged up the stairs, slightly annoyed at the boy for making so much noise. "What is it, Jimbo? People are trying to sleep."

"Look! Over there!"

Silver focused on the slow moving object, focusing with his cyborg eye. "Why, I never… thought… I'd ever see the day…"

"What? What is it?"

"My boy. That's a Sunmaid."

Jim's eyes widened.

"And it seems she's been injured."

"Well, we gotta help her-"

"What is all this racket?" Captain hollered, in red, elegant pajama pants and matching top. "Did you forget that some people sleep at night, Mr. Hawkins?"

"Jim, honestly, whatever it is, can't it wait for the morning?"

Now the rest of the crew was showing up on deck, cranky that they'd been woken up from their slumber.

"Captain, it's a sunmaid, she's hurt! We gotta help her-"

"A wha?" She shook her head, as if trying to force herself to process what he'd just said. "They're just a myth, Jim."

"Aye, I used to say the same thing. But she's aloft, injured." He gestured to the floating star-like stream not too far from the ship. The captain grabbed her glass and looked onward, gasping when the figure came up in her view.

Jet black hair braided down to her waist, pale skin and a stark white tail.

"Get on the dingy, you two, and bring her back."

"Aye, Captain!" they said in unison, running down into the ship.

They flew slowly toward the sunmaid. So many rumors about them could be true. Cannibalistic, ferocious, angry, murderous, seductive. They had to be careful.

When they were in arm's length, Jim called out to her.

"H-hey! Er, sunmaid?"

The girl opened her eyes, pointed ears wiggling to the sound of someone's voice, forest green eyes searching for a culprit. She was so petite, Jim was surprised she'd survived on her own for however long.

The girl noticed him and tried to move away, but upon whipping her tail, it disappeared in a sea of stars, replaced with a pair of legs.

And she began falling.

"Silver!"

"I'm on it!"

Silver maneuvered the dingy to aim downward, toward the tumbling girl. Jim reached out his hand, and she quickly took it, holding on for dear life. Silver steadied the little boat and slowly ascended toward the ship, Jim helping the fragile creature onto the ship. He removed his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders, embarrassed that she was in her smallclothes, and that was around to see it.

On the ship, they helped her walk, something she didn't seem accustomed with. On the top deck, people crowded them, scaring the girl, who buried herself into Jim's shoulder. Jim squeezed her shoulder in an attempt to reassure her it was OK, everything was in fact fine.

"Give her some room, you twits!" Amelia demanded, shoving everyone out of her way. "Hello, little one, I'm Captain Amelia. And you are?"

At first threatened by the cat creature, the girl warmed up to the older woman, noticing her superiority to the other members around them.

"N-Nova. I'm Nova."

"Ah, Nova. What a beautiful name." Amelia extended her hand, at which point the girl took it gingerly. "Where are you from? Where were you going?"

The girl seemed confused by the questions, but opened her mouth slowly to answer them. "I am from Solara. And I was heading toward the star Pellucid for a reunion when…"

Her face lowered and tears streamed down her face.

"Ah… I see." Amelia held a look upon her face, as if she could relate. Jim looked away, shame crossing through him again.

Wiping her face, Nova shook her head and smiled up at the captain. "I'm safe now, though."

"Yes, ya are, lassy!" Silver chimed up. "Are ya hungry? Thirsty?"

Nova's face was bright for a moment, then darkened. "Actually, I feel…" She pushed herself away and vomited in front of her.

"Shock," the doctor said simply, finding a pale and place it in front of her. "Here, use this instead of… our shoes."

"Thank you-" her gratitude was interrupted by another wave of nausea.

"Oh, things got a lot more interesting, didn't they, Doctor?" Amelia piped quietly at her furry companion.

"Indeed, Captain."


	4. Chapter 4

Sunlight

04: Introduction

Nova was to bunk with Amelia for the remainder of the voyage. It seemed only fitting; the only other female on the ship was Birdbrain, and Jim couldn't help but question her gender anyway.

She slept in the same room as the men, for crying out loud!

Amelia had gotten the young woman clothes: grey, tight pants; light blue long sleeved shirt that was too short for her midriff; white under shirt that barely showed underneath the blue; black boots.

Nova kept a distance from everyone except Jim, Silver, Doppler and Amelia. She'd only recently grown fond of Morph; his constantly shifting shape intimidated her at first.

"How do you like the ship so far?" Jim asked, after she'd been on for about a month. "The crew is strange, but they're pretty… efficient."

Nova gave a tiny smile to the boy. "Yes. They work quickly when Captain asks them too. They are obedient. I like them fine." She was still feeble around most of them, but had learned to work with and around them.

"You don't have to be so formal, you know. Except with the captain. But that's a given, I guess." He bit his tongue; Jim noticed lately when he spoke with Nova, he had a tendency to ramble.

"It's the way I was raised. I'm sorry." She leaned away, feeling as if she'd offended him.

"Hey, no! I'm fine with it, you just, you know, don't have to. Ugh! I don't know." He ruffled his hair with his hands in frustration, which caused her to laugh. "That's better." He pushed himself off the bench she was sitting at, where she was knitting silently, the captain having not given her any orders for the morning.

"I gotta swab the deck… again." He stuck out his tongue and rolled his eyes, causing another chuckle from the sunmaid. "Later."

She waved good-bye to him and watched him walk away, her eyes curious and sad.

Nova couldn't help but question about Jim. He was the type to convince others to open up about themselves, but whenever one tried to talk about him, he veered away from the subject. He was always hiding something, and seemed hurt by something, Nova could see it in his eyes.

In the Captain's quarters, Amelia and Doppler were navigating the map, marking certain places on a physical copy whenever one made a note aloud about the one floating around them.

"You're more of a navigator than an astronomer, Doctor," Amelia commented.

"I'm not sure… if that's a compliment or-"

"Hold on a moment," Amelia interrupted. "Didn't we pass this star stream right after we rescued Nova?"

"Yes, about a month ago. Which means our journey is going to end in just a few short days." After making a few side notes, he rolled up the parchment and handed it to Amelia. "And then we'll be returning home richer than our wildest dreams, in more ways than one."

Amelia placed both the solid and paper map into her storage area, locking it and pulling on the handle to make sure it wasn't going to open up by a simple tug.

Air tight.

"Indeed, Doctor. Don't tell me you're getting emotional on me right as we arrive there. It's not like we can turn back and phone your mother or-"

"Pardon me, Captain!" Doppler interjected frustratingly. "But I am a grown man, and am one with my emotions, Thank you very much!"

Amelia simply rolled her eyes at the man and began fiddling with some equipment and weaponry they'd no doubt need when they landed.

"Do you even take me seriously, Captain? Honestly? I'm no… I'm no Arrow, but I find myself useful, even without the title 'officer'."

Of course, the name "Arrow" hit a heart string, and she turned abruptly away from him to collect herself before looking back at him, sternly. "Of course, Doctor Doppler. Would I have you in my room right now, helping navigate this map in all aspects, if I didn't find you in any way useful?" She looked up then, not with an attitude, but as if she was embarrassed to admit to him she felt anything but contempt toward him.

"Ah well… I'm not sure what to say to that. But know this! I will make myself useful in whatever way possible you can think of."

"Even anatomically?" Amelia smirked, her seriousness gone and her "time-to-tease-the-Doctor" face returning.

"Wh-I-well, you see, that was a slip up-"

"Captain, we're entering a new galaxy! Wish to see?"

Amelia passed by Delbert and opened her stateroom door, leaving it open for when the Doctor finally stopped muttering to himself long enough to realize she was no longer in the room.

"Oh my!"

Stars. Stars everywhere. Nova was utterly fascinated by their beauty, reaching out to touch them, laughing like a child at how they felt against her fingertips.

"Doesn't that hurt, Nova?" Doppler asked, having finally stopped his babbling and coming up the stairs to meet the rest of the crew. "Those are balls of hot gas, after all."

"No, not at all, Doctor Doppler," she said, a sweet smile on her face. "I make them. They don't hurt me."

Confused, Amelia and Delbert exchanged glances before looking back at the smaller girl. "What do you mean, make them?"

Nova stepped away from the ship's edge and turned to them, a bright smile on her face. Holding her hands palms up, she closed her eyes and focused for a moment.

Stars pooled on and over her palms, onto the ship's deck. She opened up her eyes, giggling at them, her face utterly giddy.

"MY WORD! You could catch the ship on fire, woman!" Doppler ran to get a bucket and some water, at which point he poured all over her palms and the ground.

Shaking her hands and shrugging, she said, "I've been doing it all the time. It hasn't happened yet." She turned back to the stars and began touching them again.

And that was when, like the supernova attack, the ship rocked violently.

"Oh, bugger!" Amelia cursed. "Not again!"

"You're gonna wish it was a star when you see this, Captain," Silver said, handing her his glass. She peeked through and gritted her teeth. "Told you so."

"Blubbing pirates!" She smacked Silver's gut with his glass, though he wasn't phased by it.


	5. Chapter 5

Sunlight

05: Pirates

They whooped and hollered from the other ship, which was black and broken, as if it hadn't seen a port in quite some years. Then they fired a laser cannon at them, damaging the starboard side.

"Fire back!" The captain commanded, and everyone reacted immediately.

Jim was handed a fire arm and stood alongside John Silver, ready to fight back.

"Fire!"

Shots whizzed from either side, but it wasn't enough. The cannons were bigger. Amelia kept Nova close by her, though for some odd reason the girl was struggling with this command.

"Nova, surely you're not a professional with a firearm, are you?" Amelia didn't like assuming, for she despised those who did the same with her. But this fragile thing could not possibly have any clue how to use even a pistol, let alone any of the weaponry in their arsenal.

"Trust in me, Captain. I can help. Please?" She looked down on deck, her eyes landing on Jim, smaller than the rest of the crew, but seeming so much stronger.

Captain noticed this. After much thought, she closed her eyes and said through her teeth, "Go before I change my mind, girl." She began firing at the sails, hoping to slow them down somehow.

"Yes, ma'am." Nova stood up excitedly and rushed to the lower deck. She shook Jim's arm, trying to get his attention.

"Uh, can we talk later, Nova? I'm kind of busy!" He kept firing, though she could tell he was trying to give her his attention.

"Can you fly a boat?"

"NOW?" He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to him, a shot fired right behind and passed her.

She looked up pleadingly, at which point he simply sighed. "Lead the way, Nova."

Crawling to the galley and into the tiny port under the ship, Nova hopped onto the boat and waited for Jim to lower them and begin flying.

"I need you to get under the other ship, Jim."

"You're joking," he said dryly, and knowing by her expression she was absolutely serious. "Alright, Nova." He maneuvered the tiny boat under the larger, wrecked ship.

"Get a little farther…" She said, making calculations with her eyes.

Jim did as he was told, moving which ever way she needed to.

"As soon as I say, you fly us away from this ship as quickly as possible. Do you understand?"

Jim was confused, but nodded. Nova lifted her arms and concentrated again. Light formed around her hands, building. When she opened her eye lids, there was nothing but bright light emitting from her sockets, as if the stars had replaced her eyes entirely.

"NOW."

The light flew from her hands and through the ship, leaving a gaping whole the size of two or even three John Silvers.

Shocked, Jim didn't move for a moment. Until the ship above them started lowering onto them.

"Jim, hurry!" Nova yelled, snapping him out of his trance. He kick started the boat and flew them right back toward the Legacy as if their lives depended upon it.

Because, well, it did.

As the other ship lowered, the crew screaming along with it, the Legacy members watched in awe as the light disappeared into a thin strip until it was entirely gone. Jim and Nova secured the dingy under the ship and came back up, meeting with a congratulatory party.

"You two that was brilliant!" Doppler hugged them both, squeezing them unnecessarily hard.

"Thanks, Doc, but it was Nova's idea."

Nova's face flushed, and she rubbed her cheeks as if that were a remedy to make the redness disappear. "Ah… thank you."

That night, the crew celebrated another victory, sloshing drinks and another of Silver's mystery stews. Nova sat by her lonesome, staring into the makeshift fire pit with the holographic fire crinkling away, a small cup of Silver's stew in her hands.

"You're quite keen on her, aren't ya lad?" Silver joked, elbowing the young boy in his ribs lightly.

"Yeah, well. I have only one thing in mind right now. And I need to stay focused."

"For heaven's sakes, lad, you're young! Quit bein' serious all the time."

Jim sighed as he stared into his cup of lukewarm water, swishing it around. "I just… can't think straight when I'm around her. She has that affect on me. Is that normal?" Jim looked up at Silver, his father figure he unwillingly, unknowingly adopted.

"Absolutely, Jimbo. Don't worry. You're just bein' a boy."

Ruffling the young boy's hair, the cyborg shifted his android hand into an accordion and began playing a lively tune. The jolly crew listened to a couple of bars of the song before dancing around sluggishly, giddy from the ale they were consuming. Even Amelia and Doppler were getting along thanks to the drinks, and dancing along with each other.

"Go on, lad. Dance with her."

Silver took his elbow and roughly forced Jim to his feet. The boy hesitantly walked over to Nova and squat down beside her. She was distracted by her dancing shipmates and only a minute later did she realize he was next to her, watching her.

She felt her face blush under his gaze, and she quickly put her stew down, in case she became so nervous she dropped it on herself- or worse, on him. "H-hi, Jim. A fun night it's been, hasn't it?" Her noble English accent had taken off a pirate twang since she'd boarded the ship, Jim noticed, which made her all the more… he didn't have a word for it.

"Yes, indeed it is, missy. That's why I want to ask if you want to… to uh…"

Nova tilted her head to the side curiously, her bright green eyes urging him to continue.

"Dance, or something…" He cleared his throat, embarrassed, his hand half-heartedly extended.

Excited, Nova took his hand and went to join the rest of the crew.

It was the most fun she'd had her entire life, and possibly the only fun she'd ever have.

The night had died bit by bit, and everyone headed off to bed, finally exhausted from the day's events. Nova and Jim went their own way on the upper deck, the girl wishing to look at the stars for just a bit longer.

"The Captain believes we'll hit land anytime now. Which means a sun. I just want to see the smaller ones for just a little bit longer before a sun blocks them from my view."

"For a sunmaid, you're not too fond of the sun."

"You're not the first to say so," she said softly, looking up at him. He was about four or five inches taller than her, which was strange because back home, she was one of the taller members, tail and all. "But I just can't help it. Stars fascinate me. Suns are up close, bright, straight forward. Those little balls of fire so far away could be anything. It's magical."

"That's not the only thing magical…" Jim blurted slowly, his eyes shifting away from her.

Her eyes widened at the remark, and she couldn't help but look away as well, unsure and embarrassed.

"Aye, children. You better be off to bed now. Don't wanna confuse ya for some bandits in the middle of the night, do ya?"

"No, sir!" Jim called back. "I'll… see you tomorrow morning then, huh?"

Nova nodded, a ghostly smile on her lips as she sauntered toward the stateroom below, taking one last glance at Jim Hawkins who was staring right back at her.


	6. Chapter 6

Sunlight

06: Mutiny

Feeling rested was a short lived experience while on a voyage. In fact, it was as hot a commodity as finding treasure.

Jim, snuggled in his hammock below Snuff, was sleeping soundly until Snuff let out a nasty snore into his face, causing hot, stinky air to blow straight up his nose. Disgusted, he rolled out of his hammock and onto the floor, sighing with slight annoyance. Dragging himself into a sitting position, Jim began putting his boots on slowly, lazily. Reaching for his other one, it flew into the air, at first leaving the boy puzzled, until he realized-

"Morph… come in it's too early for this."

Morph (in boot form) flew behind some rusted chests in an attempt too hide from his bigger friend. Jim sluggishly followed behind, dropping onto his knees and sleepily searching behind the chests for the pink rascal. Morph managed to sneak from the chests and kicked Jim in his rear end, causing him to fall forward.

"Ow! Hey, Morph!"

The pink blob retained his usual shape and with a mouthy raspberry flew away, starting a game of chase.

"Come back here!" Jim said, Morph mimicking him, as was his tendency.

They began a rousing game of keep away, Morph holding Jim's boot hostage. With a leap, Jim grabbed hold of his boot, though Morph managed to escape into the lower deck through a vent. The boy lay there lazily a while before Morph began another game, tag, by blowing water into the Jim's face.

"That's it! I'm going to get you, you little squidge!"

Morph turned into Jim's tiny head, mocking him by disappearing and reappearing from the vent as tinier heads, repeating the words "you little squidge". Jim tried, and failed, to attack the tiny bugger, but it seemed no use after a moment- Morph wasn't coming back up.

Lowing into the galley, Jim scanned the area for where Morph could be hiding- the fruit barrel. Taking a tiny glance inside, Morph gave up his position and Jim leapt inside, grabbing hold of the squishy body of his friend.

"Busted!"

Once Jim caught him, he began petting Morph, he flattened himself slightly and caved in to defeat.

"We're sick of all this waiting!" rang Birdbrain's voice, which caused Jim to quiet down. He hadn't fully trusted the crew Doppler had hired, and upon hearing Mary's exclamation, he could find out what about them made his skin crawl.

"We are wanting to move!" yelled Meltdown, cannon expert in his Russian accent.

Jim sat up more and peeked through a tiny hole formed in the barrel.

"We don't move til the treasure is in hand!" said Silver sternly, giving the eye to each and every member in his presence.

"I say we kill them all now," chimed in Scroop, idling on the side almost nonchalantly. Jim figured the idea of killing a living creature wouldn't phase the spider psycho one bit.

Jim watched as Silver grabbed hold of Scroop's face, forcing the spider to stare into his piercing eyes. "I say, what's this I say! Disobey my orders like that stunt you pulled with Arrow, and so help me, you'll be joinin' him!" Silver shoved Scroop away from him, as if disgusted with the trash in his hand. Scroop stopped as he made contact with Jim's barrel.

"Strong talk, but I know otherwise…" Scroop began slowly, reaching into the barrel.

"Y'got somethin' to say, Scroop?" Silver challenged.

As Scroop reached around with a meaty red claw for a purp, Jim, panicked, lifted a small fruit to him, at which point Scroop removed his claw and began turning the purp round.

"Me thinks you have a soft…" Symbolically, he poked a hole into the tiny fruit, "spot for him."

"Now mark me, the lot of ya!" Silver exclaimed. "I only care about one thing, and one thing only: Flint's trove! You think I'm going to ruin it for some nose wipin' little whelp!"

"What was it?" Scroop smirked, putting on a look of false adoration. "You got the makin's of greaaaatness in ya!"

The other crew members eyed Silver suspiciously, and the leading mate's expression darkened completely in the direction of the spider creature.

"I cozied up to the kid to keep him off our scent. But I ain't gone soft!"

Onus' squeaky loud voice echoed into the galley. "Planet HOOOO!"

The crew cheered and raced to the top deck to take a gander at the place they'd been sailing months to see. The planet was quite large, with two wide rings, perpendicular to one another, surrounding it. It had a beautiful blue-green color around it, very cool, very relaxing.

"Isn't it beautiful, Silver?" said Nova, sneaking up on the bigger man.

"Ah, lass, it sure is." Silver pat the young woman's head, who looked up at him in delight. "It sure is." He took his hand away from her hair and searched his pockets, as if he'd lost something. "Well, where the devil is my glass?"

Nova stared at him curiously, then shrugged. "Wherever you kept it last, I presume, Mr. Silver."

Silver petted the girl one last time before returning to the galley, just to come face to face with Jim.

"Jimbo!" he glanced left and right, suspiciously, like he didn't want anyone else around for whatever conversation they were about to have. He ascended down the stairs, Jim walking backward simultaneously. "Playing games, are we?"

Jim's expression was almost accusing as he answered, "Yeah… yeah we're playing games."

"Ah, I see. Well, I… I was not so good at playin' games. Never much liked losin'."

Jim noticed how Silver's hand shifted, and he heard a slight clicking noise. Almost instinctively, he grabbed hold of a pick on the table behind him and watched the bigger man for any sudden movements, or if he'd noticed at all.

He didn't.

"Huh… well, neither was I!"

He lunged forward and jammed the pick into Silver's cybernetic leg, running quickly out of the galley and onto the upper deck.

"Jim?" Nova called, noticing her friend's panicked expression. "What's the matter?"

"Come on!" Jim grabbed Nova's wrist and ran toward the stateroom.

"Jim, what's going on!" Nova demanded, scared for her friend as well as for herself. Jim pushed Nova into the room and locked the door behind him. He could hear screams coming from the other side.

"Mr. Hawkins? Nova? Do you two not know how to knock?" Amelia was at her desk, still making calculations now that they were practically on their destined planet. Doctor Delbert was beside her, also making notes- and his pencil was turned around to its eraser, which no doubt meant they were arguing on where to go when they arrived.

"Captain- the crew! They're starting a mutiny, they're going to take over the ship and take the map, we gotta get out of here!" Jim spewed this news almost at once, each word overlapping the next.

"Pirates on my ship?" Amelia stood up, stomping over to her closet and unlocking it. She took out a pistol and loaded it up. "I see they all hang!"


	7. Chapter 7

Sunlight

07: Escape

Jim stood close to Nova, keeping his hand on her shoulder at all times. He had this strange need to protect her.

Jim, Nova and Delbert stood behind Amelia as she fiddled with her closet. She took out a flintlock and tossed it over to Delbert. "Doctor, do you know how to use one of these?"

Delbert held the gun away from him. "Well, I have seen, well, I have read-" He accidentally shot at Amelia's globe, earning him a glare. "Well, no. No, no I don't."

Sighing, Amelia took out the map and tossed it toward Jim. "Mr. Hawkins, protect this with your life."

Midair, Morph caught the orb and played keep-away with the boy. "Morph, no! Give it back!" Jim grabbed the map and shoved it into his pocket, Morph making a home inside that same pocket.

The group could hear them trying to open the lock of the door. "Are yeh gonna be all day with it?" yelled Silver over the laser noise.

"Let's go!" Jim called, taking the flintlock and blasting a hole into the floor.

Nova first, followed by Amelia and then so on, they ran toward the hatch, barely hearing Silver call out, "Go after them!"

They reached the hatch, Nova following after Jim at this point.

"To the life boats!" ordered Amelia. She went to the latch and pulled it toward her. The door underneath them slowly, surely opened up to space.

Jim entered first, helping Nova inside beside him. Doppler shortly followed. Summersaulting into the longboat, distracting the other three, Morph used this opportunity to grab the map and fly off the little dingy.

"No! Morph!" Jim jumped out after the pink creature, fuming and frustrated. His arms uselessly reach for the sneaky pink ball.

Nova gasped, looking onward at her friend. "Jim, hurry!" The boat had started to lower.

The pirates have at this point swarmed around them, and Amelia, in a futile attempt to protect themselves, shot at them. On a whim, Doppler aimed upwards at a pulley and shot at it, causing it to plummet onto the deck the pirates were on. They fell quickly into the voids of space, leaving both Nova and Amelia awestruck.

"Did you mean to shoot that?" Amelia mused.

"You know, actually I did?" In the midst of answering, they were fired at once more.

Now Nova joined in the crossfire, using her sunmaid-given powers to blast anyone that came close. But these men were big, and most of them barely affected by the blasts.

Silver had come up to the lever and closed the hatch, causing Amelia to mutter something inaudible. The woman, strategically, looked then faced Doppler. "Doctor, when I say 'now' I want you to shoot out the forward cable. I got this one." By "one" she was referring to the pulley on the other end of their boat. Doppler nodded understandingly and stood at the ready.

Nova watched as Silver and Jim fought with Morph for the map. They were whistling at him like he was some animal, and the poor thing looked utterly confused on which way to go. Finally, Morph hid inside some tangled rope, map still in his mouth. Silver's injured android leg gave out under him, and the man went falling, giving Jim an advantage. He reached inside the pile and grabbed the orb, looking for only a second at Silver, almost hurt, before running away.

Jim jumped onto the side of the longboat, holding onto the side. Nova stopped attacking the remaining pirates and reached down to help him.

"Now!" hollered Amelia, shooting at one pulley as Doppler shot at the other. They tumbled downward, into space, Jim sliding along the edge of the boat.

"Jim!" called a panicked Doppler, helping Nova pull Jim into the boat. Amelia took the responsibility of steering, starting the solar sails and flying away.

As they believed they were out of harm's way, even for a moment, Doctor looked up and screamed, "Captain! Laser bullet at twelve o' clock!"

It shot right above captain, taking down their solar sail. They began plummeting down onto the planet. Without thinking, Nova wrapped her arms around Jim, shocking him, and concentrated, turning back into her normal self and flew away from the falling boat. She raced after them, holding Jim from under his arms, hands locked at his chest. She safely lowered him down onto the ground, transforming her tail into jeaned legs before helping Jim lift the boat off of the doctor and captain.

"Sorry; I could only save one, and I grabbed who was first," Nova said feebly.

"It's fine, Nova. Nothing but a couple scratches." As Amelia tried to brush off Nova's apology, she fell down once more, holding her side. "Oof!"

"Captain!" The Doctor exclaimed, reaching down to help her up, though she only shoved him away.

"Oh don't fuss," she strained to say, picking herself up a little quicker, though not so normally. "Slight bruising. Cup of tea and I'll be right as rain." She brushed her uniform and turned to the Doctor. "Mr. Hawkins." Squinting, realizing she was referring to the wrong person, she faced Jim. "The map, if you please?"

Jim reached into his pocket and pulled out the map. It began opening on its own, without him even unlocking it- only to discover it wasn't map, but Morph, playing a trick.

"Morph… Morph, where's the map?"

The little creature transformed into the coil of rope he'd hidden in before and the map, representing the location of the map.

"Are you SERIOUS? It's back on the ship?" Jim began grabbing at Morph, who wasn't at all taking the situation seriously.

Amelia, having looked up, gritted through her teeth, "Stifle that blob… and get low. We have company."


	8. Chapter 8

Sunlight

08: B.E.N.

Jim, Amelia, Nova and Doppler watch as a longboat flew above them, many heads visible from their position, Jim able to pick out Silver out of the rest of them directly in front.

"We need a more defensible position," Amelia said. "Mr. Hawkins." Jim tore his gaze from the longboat above to their captain. Her hand extended, handing him a flintlock. "I need you to scout ahead."

"Aye, Captain," Jim said soberly, turning around, not looking at them.

Nova watched the doctor assist the captain to the ground, as she'd cried out in pain. When it was evident he had the situation taken care of, she chased after Jim, grabbing hold of his shoulder.

Jim looked back at her, his eyes sad and a bit forlorn. "I don't want to come along, Nova. I don't want you to get hurt."

She stared back stubbornly. "You're not going alone, Jim. I'm coming with you, whether you like it." She could tell he was worried about being slowed down. "Please, Jim? I'll keep up. I can handle myself. Don't worry about me."

Torn, he finally sighed and nodded, unable to fight her gaze. He gestured for her to follow close by. She obeyed gladly.

They ventured pretty far ahead of the other two, Jim keeping his eyes all around him, Nova and Morph's gaze on their more wise leader. Moving some foliage out of their way and helping Nova over a log, he suddenly froze at the sound of some brush being moved about from behind them.

Morph made a gurgling noise, and Nova was about to open her mouth, but Jim shushed them, taking out his gun. He approached the area in which the noise had come from, slowly, carefully, eying it accusingly. Leaning over, he checked the area-

Only to be scared to death by some robot screaming in excitement at the sight of him. Jim exclaimed and stepped back, Nova coming up beside him in case he needed her.

But by the look of the bot, there wasn't much to worry about.

The robot inspected Jim closely, climbing on him almost breathlessly. "Oh, this is fantastic! A carbon-based life form here to rescue me at last!" The robot pinched Jim's skin, as if unable to believe what he was seeing.

Jim attempted to pry the bot off him, but to no avail. He looked to Nova and Morph for help, but they weren't coming to his rescue anytime soon; they were too busy silently cackling at his tortured expression.

"I just wanna hug ya and squeeze ya and hold ya close to me!" it screeched, practically lifting Jim off his feet in a crunching hug.

"OK, alright," Jim said in his struggle, pushing away from the robot. They fought like this for a bit before the boy finally said, "Would you get off me?"

The robot, shocked but obedient, removed himself from Jim's torso. "Oh, uh, sorry, uh…" He wrapped his robotic arm around Jim's shoulder, which he didn't welcome but didn't pluck him off. "I-I've been, uh, marooned here for, you know, so long. And solitude's fine and everything but after a hundred years YOU GO A LITTLE NUTS!" The robot chuckled nervously, glancing over at an un-amused Jim. He took his arm off Jim's shoulder. "Oh! Uh, sorry uh… Well, my name is…" He stepped back, grabbing hold of his forehead in an attempt to remember who exactly he was. "B.E.N. Of course! Bio-Electric Navigator! And you are?"

Jim, blank faced, answered, "Jim."

"Nice to meet ya, Jimmy!"

"It's 'Jim'," he pointedly corrected.

"Of course! And the lovely lady?" B.E.N. leaned toward Nova, who was idly picking at a beautiful blue floral plant.

"Uh… She's Nova."

B.E.N. glanced at Jim watching Nova, then at the distracted girl, then back at Jim again, his expression growing impish. "Ah, I gotcha, Jimmy."

Confused, Jim glared at B.E.N. "No, you don't understand. It's not like-"

"Anyway," the robot interrupted.

Turning in the opposite direction, in an escape attempt, Jim said, "Look, I'm kind of in a hurry. I'm trying to hide from these pirates-"

"Oh, pirates! Don't get me started! I hated them!" B.E.N. found an abandoned rock and sat back, lounging and getting comfortable. By this point, Nova had returned to them, as she'd noticed Jim ready to leave. "I remember Cap'n Flint! He had such a temper."

The boy whipped his head around to stare at the robot incredulously. "Wait, wait, you knew Captain Flint?"

Jim and Nova shared excited glances before returning their gazes back to the robot.

"I think he suffered from mood swings, personally. I'm not therapist but-"

"But that means," Jim interrupted, "that you know about… the treasure?"

"Treasure?"

"You know, a loot of A Thousand Worlds?" Jim clued.

B.E.N.'s stood up then, as if a picture had formed in his mind. "I-I remember. Treasure, lots of treasure!" His eyes change into an image of a treasure chest. "In the c-c-centroid of the mechanism! A-and a door o-opening and cl-cl-closinnnnnnnnnng. A-and Flint wanted to make sure no one could find his t-t-treasure. So I helped him-"

B.E.N.'s stuttering worsened at this point, sparks flying all around his head. Nova and Morph hid behind Jim, who kept a protective arm out by Nova.

"Yeeeeaaaaaaaaaaa, DATA INACCESSABLE REBOOT REBOOT REBOOT."

Jim lifted his free hand and slapped B.E.N. across the face. Head spinning, the robot readjusted his slightly loose jaw and looked up at Jim, as if meeting him for the first time. "And you are?"

"Wait!" Jim said annoyingly. "What about the treasure?"

"I wanna say Larry?"

The three stared at him almost shocked by the events that had occurred in the past few minutes.

"Sorry, m-my mind isn't what it used to be. I've lost my mind!" Picking up Jim and flipping him upside down, like a bully shaking down a nerd, he asked, "You haven't seen it have you?" He placed Jim right side up again.

"Uh…"

B.E.N. pointed to the back of his head, where a few loose wires stuck out. "My primary memory circuit."

"Look, B.E.N., I really need to find a place to hide, so, uh, you know, I'm moving on." Jim turned away again, determined to keep going forth.

B.E.N.'s legs folded into a pair of wheels, and he slowly crawled the other direction. "Uh, so… this is goodbye, isn't it? Well… uh… sorry, I'm so… dysfunctional."

Nova gave one last glance at a hurt little robot, exchanging a mournful look with Morph. She grabbed hold of Jim's arm, forcing him to stop. He looked back at her, almost as if he didn't want to; he knew what she was about to ask of him.

"Oh no. No, Nova, we can't-"

"Give him a chance, please?" Her round green eyes stared into his blue eyes pleadingly, and they locked gazes for what seemed like an eternity.

"I don't want him getting in my way. What if he messes up?"

She parted her lips as if to say something, looking down, then finally said, "People thought the same of you, didn't they?"

Jim gave a hot sigh before trudging back to the robot. "Look, if you're gonna come along, you're gonna have to stop talking."

B.E.N.'s form went back to normal. "HAZZAH! Oh this is fantastic!" He leapt into the boy's arms, wrapping his own around Jim's neck. "Me and my best buddy looking for a… a…" He noticed Jim was quite annoyed at the fact he'd already broken the first condition. He mimed zipping his mouth. "No talking."

Jim forcefully dropped the robot and turned away. "And you have to quit TOUCHING me."

"Right. Talking and touching: my two big "no-nos". But she can, right?" B.E.N. pointed to Nova. Her cheeks turned bright red at the attention.

Jim made a quick glance at his companion, shaking his head and stuttering. "Look, let's just go this way-"

"Hey, before we go on our little 'hunt'," B.E.N. interrupted, pushing aside some foliage to reveal an elevated hideout. "Could we make a pit stop at my place. It's, uh, kind of urgent." He placed his hands between his legs, indicating he had to use the little robot's room.

"B.E.N., I think you just solved my problem!"


	9. Chapter 9

Sunlight

09: Map

Nova and Jim, Morph in Jim's pocket, stepped aside as B.E.N. led the way into his home, Doppler holding a weakened Amelia in his arms following. When everyone was safely inside, B.E.N., in a futile attempt to clean the place up for his guests, began rearranging and throwing things aside. Holding a pair of bloomers behind his back, embarrassed, he gawked appreciatively at Doppler carrying Amelia.

"Aw, isn't that sweet? I find old fashioned romance refreshing!" He reached behind him for some "drinks", presenting a tray with two cups filled with oil. "How about drinks for the happy couple?"

Doppler at first was disgusted by the drink, then he attempted to compose himself and thank B.E.N. for being considerate. "Ah, no, we don't drink…" He tended to Amelia, placing his coat under her head, hoping to prop her up. "And, ah, we're not a couple."

Their exchanging smiles said otherwise.

Embarrassed, Doppler cleared his throat and looked around B.E.N.'s home. "Look! These markings are identical to the ones on the map! I suspect this is the remnants of a hieroglyphical ancient culture!"

Amelia tried to sit up and face Jim. "Mr. Hawkins! Stop anyone who tries to threaten- oof!" She fell back again, a wave of pain running through her.

Doppler bent down to assist her, forcing her to lay down fully. "Now, stop barking orders for a few milliseconds!" He sounded falsely stern. "And lie still."

Amelia seemed amused by Doppler's banter. "Very forceful, Doctor. Say something else?"

They exchanged another faint smile, their attention torn from each other when they heard B.E.N. yelling at the entrance. "Hey, look!" He waved his arms sporadically. "There're some more of your buddies! HEY FELLAS! HEY WE'RE OVER HERE!"

"B.E.N.!" Nova exclaimed, ducking down as fires were shot at their hideout. "This was a short-lived experience!"

Jim grabbed hold of the robot and pulled him away from the entrance, leaning over to shoot at their pursuers. He saw Silver approaching, his android arm extended as a cane to help him walk, since his cyborg leg was damaged. Jim secretly bathed in this fact; Silver's biggest weakness was losing.

"Don't waste your ammo!" Silver ordered, and his cronies put down their weapons. "Hello! Hello up there, Jimbo?"

Jim looked over at Nova, who shook her head, signaling he should do anything BUT go to the cyborg.

"If it's alright with the cap'n', I'd like to have a word with ya! No tricks! Just a little palaver."

"Come to bargain for the map, doubtlessly. Pestilential-" Amelia clutched her side as she got more fired up, straining her injury.

Doppler pat her hand gently, holding her. "Captain…"

Jim and Nova continue with their silent conversation when his eyes lit up.

"Jim…" Nova warned, reaching out for him. "He's no good."

"Yes but… but this means they think we still have the map."

Nova raised an eyebrow. "What good is that going to do?"

"Just stay here." He leapt over the entrance and sauntered down to Silver, who was sitting on a large root.

Morph left Jim's pocket to snuggle up to Silver. "Ah, Morphy! I was wonderin' where you'd gone." He began rubbing his leg, his arm back to its normal state. "Oh oh! This leg has been giving me trouble since our game o' tag in the galley, eh?" He looked up hopefully at Jim, laughing. The boy simply glared in return. "Eh… Whatever you heard back there, at least the part concerning you… I didn't mean a word of it! They all thought I'd gone soft. They'd've gutted us both!" He clenched his chest in emphasis, then leaned toward Jim, placing an arm around him. "If we play our cards right, we could leave this planet rich as kings!"

Jim placed a hand on his chin thoughtfully, then looked up at Silver. "Yeah?"

Laughing, Silver answered, "Of course! Just get me the map!"

Jim slid away from Silver's grasp, walking around him. "Boy, you really are… something." His expression went from exuberant child to angry teenager in a matter of moments. "All that talk of light coming off my sails, a lie, wasn't it?"

Stuttering, confused, Silver tried to keep himself composed. "Jim, look, I-"

"But you did teach me one thing, stick to it, right? And that's what I'm gonna do! I'm going to make sure you never see a single drabloon of MY treasure!" At this point, Jim was in Silver's face, challenging. His face was pure fury, at the ready. He wasn't going to allow some pirate take away what was rightfully his, not this close to it.

"That treasure has OWED ME by t'under!"

"Well try and find it without MY map, by t'under!" Jim mocked.

Gritting his teeth, tired of these childish games, Silver said, "Oh Jim, you still don't know when to pick your fights, do ya?" He stood up, turning away, but then looking back at Jim to declare a promise. "Now mark me: I had better get that map by dawn t'morrow, or I'll blow this whole planet to kingdom come!" Morph, having moved away from Silver, now stood beside Jim, frightened. "Morph, come!" The little pink bugger cowered behind Jim's shoulder. "NOW!" Still, Morph made no move toward Silver. Exhausted, the big lug limped away as angrily as he could.

They all sat silently for the longest time, until sunset, contemplating their next course of action. Still, no ideas came to mind.

"I hate this," Nova said quietly, breaking the silence. Jim looked sadly at his friend, unsure of what to say. "I mean, this whole mess. How do most people deal with messes like this? I haven't had much contact with anyone outside of my own species. It all seems… hopeless."

Jim glanced out the entrance, standing up and crossing his arms. "Without the map, we're dead. If we leave, we're dead. If we stay…"

Morph, thinking it was a fun word game, finished for him: "We're dead! We're dead!"

Jim wasn't amused.

B.E.N., unsure of what else to do, backed away from the group. "Well, uh, I think Jimmy needs some 'quiet time', so I'll uh, just slip out the back door."

Nova and Jim looked at each other, then at the robot. "What?" Jim ran up to him, watching him turn over a round tunnel entrance, wind blowing through it.

"Yeah, I get this delightful breeze from down here! Which is good, because proper ventilation among friends-"

"Wait, what's all this?" Jim leaned over the entrance, down into what seemed like an abyss of paths and stairways.

"You mean the miles and miles of machinery running throughout the entire planet? Not a clue!"

"Hey Doc! DOC! I found a way out!" Jim heaved himself up, ready to jump through the hole.

"Hey, Jim! No, the Captain ordered us to stay-"

Ignoring him, he saluted the older gentleman. "I'll be back!" Then he jumped inside, disappearing.

"Cannonball!" B.E.N. hollered, holding his knees and following after him.

"Woof."

Nova bit her lip, unsure if she should follow or stay. Noticing how awkward it was between the three of them- there was obviously something up between the Doctor and the Captain- she sighed and pushed herself off the ground. "I better try and keep him out of trouble."

"Good luck," the Doctor said dryly, though amused.

She lifted herself up and into the entrance, landing softly onto a metal ledge. She followed the sound of footsteps- and B.E.N.'s voice- until she finally caught up with them. She grabbed hold of B.E.N.'s shoulder, he leapt in the air and hollered obscenities in fear.

"B.E.N.! It's me, stop that yelling," she demanded.

Jim looked confused by pleased by her presence.

"Lead the way," she said, ready to follow.


	10. Chapter 10

Sunlight

10: Scroop

Jim and B.E.N. worked to open the lid of a smaller entrance they'd reached after a few minutes of walking. During that time, they made small talk; it seemed to speak however loudly as one wished, since no one but them knew of its location.

"Do you regret any of this, Jim?" Nova asked, trying to keep up but unfortunately becoming distracted by the insides of this mysterious planet.

"'This' what?"

"The journey, the people, everything."

"No, not really. Because my reason for being here is obvious: my mother. I have to do it for her, so I'm willing to go through anything, if it's for her."

Nova let this settle, then she said, "That's awful admirable of you-"

"That's Jimmy for ya! Admirable and brave and wonderful," B.E.N. interjected excitedly and proudly.

"Uh, thanks," Jim said simply, embarrassed.

They shoved the entrance open only a bit, enough to peek out. Only B.E.N. had a more direct approach. "So what's the plan, Jimmy?"

Jim, in a futile attempt to shut up the robot, grabbed hold of his mouth and held it shut, glaring disapprovingly at him. "B.E.N., shush!"

"Sorry, Jimmy," he mumbled to the best of his ability.

Jim took a quick glance at the sleeping pirates before turning back to his companions. "Okay, here it is. We're going to get on the ship-"

"Mmm-hmm."

"-disable the laser cannons-"

"OK."

"-and get the map."

"Dat's a goo' plan, I yike dat plan. Only ting is, how do we get dere?"

"With that," Jim whispered, gesturing with his head toward Silver's longboat.

On the Legacy, the gang snuck over the edge and down toward the galley, heading toward the haul. "Alright," Jim said, "I'll go find the map. You stay here."

"Right. Disable laser cannons, Captain Jimmy, sir!" Going from legs to wheels, B.E.N. rolled away in the opposite direction Jim intended to go.

"Wait, B.E.N., no!" Jim sighed, rubbing his face with his hand frustratingly.

"I-I'll follow him, Jim," Nova volunteered, turning away. Jim grabbed hold of her arm, shocking her. "Are you alright?" she asked, looking back at him.

"I just… don't want you to get hurt, is all. Stay safe." He let her go, as if her skin was on fire. Nodding, they went their separate ways.

Jim made his way into the haul, where the map still lay. Reaching inside the rope coil, he pulled out the golden sphere, delighted at the sight of it. Then alarms sounded overhead, and Jim made his way back up the stairs in an attempt to escape. "That stupid robot is going to get us all-"

To his demise, Scroop stood in the way of their only exit. "-killed."

"Cabin boy," Scroop smirked, making his way down the stairs, taking his time with each step.

Panicked, Jim makes his way toward another exit- any exit. Morph tried his best to hold the spider psycho at bay, turning himself into a piece of pie and slapping himself into Scroop's face, but it only faltered the spider for a moment. Angrily, he flung the pink blog into an air vent and away he flew.

Jim hid behind a dead end, pulling out his flintlock and getting it ready. He didn't like the idea of shooting anyone, however he knew it was necessary- kill or to be killed. When the steps of Scroop became closer, almost too close for comfort, Jim revealed himself, gun aimed directly at Scroop's face. The spider looked shocked and almost scared at the barrel in his face.

Then the lights shut off.

"B.E.N.!" Nova shouted, loud enough for Jim to hear.

When the lights came on again, the spider had disappeared. Jim's heart raced as he looked either direction, not thinking to look above him. The spider, when the boy's back was turned, lowered himself onto the ground and when Jim looked back, flung him across the room. Jim landed on his back, harshly, his flintlock flying to the right of him, out of reach.

When his life seemed to flash before his eyes, B.E.N. came through by mistaking the cannon plug with that of the anti-gravity. They began floating into the air, catching Scroop off guard. Jim took this as his opportunity to take the spider down, kicking him in his gut and sending him through the air vent toward the vastness of space. As they floated upward, Jim tried, and failed, to grab his flintlock, one last desperate measure to get Scroop off his tail for good.

Having gone too high, Jim grabbed hold of Silver's flag, his hands tightening on the fabric for dear life. Scroop stalked up the pillar, using the inside of his claw to slowly cut the rope. "Say hello to Mr. Arrow for me."

Jim lunged himself onto the pillar, still holding on tight. His mind was racing, knowing Scroop would become frustrated with Jim's little games and take care of the business quickly. As expected, Scroop crawled up the pillar, and with one final lunge, kicked and hurled the spider into space, the flag going along with it. "Tell him yourself!"

When his fingers could no longer hold onto the pillar, gravity forced him back into the crow's nest. He tried to catch his breath, his eyes shutting, having become tired. Morph came out of the microphone, covered in soot. "… Morph?"

"Laser cannons disabled, Cap'n Jimmy sir! See? That wasn't so difficult."

Jim pushed himself off the ground to look down, his gaze falling on a robot covered in wires, and a girl relentlessly trying to untangle him.


	11. Chapter 11

Sunlight

11: Path

They made their way back to the ship, tired, exhausted, a little irritated at a certain robot since he wouldn't quit talking. Jim and B.E.N. lifted the larger entrance lid and pushed it aside, the interior of B.E.N.'s home extremely dark. They stepped over the edge quite loudly, wanting Amelia and Doppler to awaken.

"Hey, Doc. Doc! Wake up. We got the map," Jim exclaimed, going toward the shadow he figured was Doppler's. As it stood up, to his horror, the silhouette didn't belong to Delbert, but to John Silver.

"Fine work, Jimbo. Fine work, indeed."

Jim's mind raced, trying to find some type of solution to get out of this. Nothing came to mind. The room was lit up by one of the pirates, revealing Doppler and Amelia tied up and gagged. They grabbed hold of B.E.N., Jim and Nova, all trying to struggle, to no avail.

Still no answer to his problem.

Silver approached Jim, in his face, and plucked the map from his hands, admiring it greedily. "You and I are a lot alike, Jimbo. We hate losin'." His smirk was mocking, evil intentions lying along it. The cyborg struggled with opening the map, stroking along it, probing along the buttons, but nothing was happening. He glanced over at Jim, who's expression looked just as mocking as Silver's earlier. Silver gestured for his lackeys to let go of the boy. "Open it." He tossed the golden orb at Jim, who caught it effortlessly.

Jim simply stared at it, as if he was bored of the trouble the sphere had brought them. Silver, annoyed, turned his robotic arm into a flintlock, pointing it at Nova's face. She called out in shock and fear, though she shook her head at Jim. Even if her life was in peril, she didn't want him giving in to these pirates. "I'd get busy," he warned.

With a grudging sigh, Jim pressed a few buttons, spun the map around a few times, and then the map appeared, Treasure Planet glowing in the center of them all. Silver was fascinated by the path it formed, a green light emanating from the orb, a throbbing yellow light leading the way to go. "Would you look at that!" As they all began to lose themselves in the light, it disappeared back into the orb.

"You want the map?" Jim said, looking down at the sphere in his hand. "You're taking me too." Jim knew that he needed at least a few pieces of that treasure for his mother. And he was the only one could operate the map correctly. They needed him, as much as Silver would hate to admit it.

Silver laughed at this, before thinking more carefully, coming to the same conclusion Jim knew he would. "Bring 'em all."

Jim re-opened the map, leading the way. They piled into the long boat and flew along the path, watching it carefully for any changes.

The longboat stopped, and Silver forced Jim to exit, followed by the rest of the pirates and B.E.N. Meltdown stayed behind, guarding the two tied up prisoners.

"Jimmy, I-I don't know about you," B.E.N. began to whisper, though with each word, his volume escalated. "But I'm starting to see my LIFE flash before my eyes. WAS I EVER DANCING WITH AN ANDROID NAMED LUPE?"

Jim stopped in his tracks, causing Nova to bump into his back. He pressed his hand on B.E.N.'s mouth, even though he knew that wouldn't be enough to stop the robot from talking. "Shh. This isn't over yet."

Nova glanced between the two of them, admiring Jim's bravery. He'd caught her gaze, and she began innocently playing with her long braid, as if she was mesmerized by how it hit her hip perfectly when she dropped it from her hands.

Making their way through some brush, the yellow light began to dominate the green one more regularly. This pleased Silver. "We're gettin' close, lads!"

Moving aside some foliage, the light led them to a cliff. When they approached the edge, it disappeared.

"Uh…" Nova mumbled dumbly, looking over the edge carefully.

"Is it down there?" Jim asked, also glancing over with a hand on her shoulder; he wasn't going to have her fall over, even if she could fly.

"Can't you check, lass?" Silver asked impatiently, referring to Nova. The girl nodded, though she wasn't pleased with the idea of flying at the moment.

She gave herself a small running start before she dove over the cliff, changing forms mid-dive. She came back up slowly, turning into her "human" form (pointed ears aside), her expression disappointed and scared. "Nothing. Just rocks."

"Blast it all!" Silver cursed. The crew followed behind him, also screaming obscenities.

"Man, someone needs to have their mouth rinsed out with soap, eh, Jimmy?" B.E.N. inquired. Jim was distracted, on the ground, searching for a key of some sort.

Nova bent down next to Jim, hands on her knees. "What are you searching for, Jim?"

"A door. A key. A lock. Something. The map led us here for a reason and-" He stopped midsentence, his hands roaming along some strange stone markings on the ground.

"Jim, whatever you're doing, hurry, because the pirates are starting a mutiny against you," Nova warned, standing up and moving toward the edge of the cliff. B.E.N. was beside her, his eyes just as frightened.

Jim, almost unconsciously, slammed the map into space it seemed to fit, and the ground glowed a bright phosphorescent green, a gust blowing around them. Jim reached out and grabbed Nova's arm, pulling her close, just in case. B.E.N. was so mesmerized by the light, his eyes staring at an object forming just beyond the cliff's edge, he didn't think to move.

"B.E.N., get back here," Jim hollered, reaching for the robot and throwing him behind him.

And there stood a door, triangular, depicting a galaxy much too far away to be real. Where the map stood, a green sphere had hovered above it, holographic, Treasure Planet in the dead center. Jim tentatively let go of Nova and touched it, the area of the planet now in view.

"Oh, sweet goddess," whispered Nova, crashing onto her knees and praying. No one figured her a religious sort, but no one interrupted her.

Jim experimented with different planets, the crew becoming more fascinated with just what they were seeing.

"How is this possible?" wondered Silver aloud.

"This must be how Flint did it," Jim answered, though the question hadn't been toward anyone. "He used this to travel to so many planets, then disappeared."

"Fascinatin'," said the big pirate, pushing Jim aside. Nova stood up and grabbed hold of his arm, looking concerned.

"Something about this is evil, Jim," she said, a bit too loudly.

B.E.N. sauntered between them, detaching Nova and placing an arm over each of their shoulders. "I gotta agree with the girl. S-something is nagging at me I-I just can't…" He let them go and began knocking on his head.

"Don't worry so much, guys. This is it, this is our chance." Jim looked away from them, his round blue eyes on the map. B.E.N. and Nova exchanged worried glances but said nothing further.

"But where is the treasure?" Silver shouted, now frustrated.

Jim cautiously stood beside him, pressed treasure planet again, and said, "You just have to pick the right door."

And there it stood: Flint's Trove.


	12. Chapter 12

Sunlight

12: Escape

Jim watched the others walk ahead of him, B.E.N., Morph and Nova confused as to why he hadn't moved. Then he turned around to face Nova, utterly serious.

"I want you to stay behind."

The girl's jaw dropped, her light pink lips forming a perfect "O" in shock. Recovering, she replied sharply, "Absolutely not, Jim Hawkins. No. NO." Her thin black eyebrows furrowed, frustrated. "I'm not letting go in there alone."

"Hey! I resent that!" B.E.N. chirped, offended. Nova gave him a knowing glance. "Yeah, she's right, Jim, it's probably not a good idea."

"I would rather go in there alone than risk something happening to you. Please?" His childish blue eyes begged her to stay behind.

Sighing hotly, she crossed her arms and looked away. "Fine. But I'm standing right here. You have thirty minutes, do you hear me? If you're not back in thirty, treasure or no treasure, I'm bringing you back out."

This was a new side Jim hadn't seen in Nova. Defensive, protective, loving, stubborn. He quite enjoyed this Nova. He would have to bring this part of her out more often in the future.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." He waved and ran after the group.

Jim watched as the pirates practically swam in the treasure, the centroid of the mechanism their own little swimming pool. He searched the area, finally finding a longboat. He rushed toward it.

"Jim," B.E.N. hollered after the boy. "This all s-seems so familiar."

"B.E.N.! We're getting out of here," Jim said, ignoring the robot. "And we're not leaving empty handed."

They climb onto the boat, B.E.N. first. He let out a blood curdling scream, catching Jim's attention. Jim gasped, his eyes landing on a skeleton.

"Captain Flint?"

"In the flesh! Well… not really, you know." The robot rubbed his head. "And yet, you know, I still feel there is s-something missing. L-like there's something Flint didn't want anyone else to know." Jim pried open Flint's hand, something laying inside it seeming vaguely familiar. Comparing it to B.E.N.'s head, it only made sense that it belonged to the robot. "Oh, the mind is a horrible thing!"

"B.E.N., I think I just found your MIND! Hold still!" Whirling B.E.N. around, Jim aligned the piece with his open scalp.

The robot's eyes shift, turning from yellow to blue, looking more clear and settled. "It's all coming back to me! All the memories! Especially the one about the- BOOBY TRAP!"

Suddenly, an explosion sounded elsewhere, shaking the entirety of the mechanism.

"Speaking of which…"

Jim, not wasting time, began rewiring the inner-workings of the boat he was on. "B.E.N. go back to the ship and help the Doc and Captain. If I'm not back in five minutes, leave without me!"

"I'm not leavin' without my friend, Jimmy-" His sentence was caught off, holding Jim's feet in midair, staring into the dark glare of his "friend". He dropped his feet, stepping away. "Unless… he looks at me like that… good luck, Jimmy!" And off he ran.

B.E.N. and Morph were right behind the pirates, no Silver or Jim in sight. Nova bit her lip, grabbing hold of B.E.N. and pulling him aside.

"He said give him five minutes, girly!" B.E.N. said, already knowing her question.

"That's five minutes too many. I have to go-"

B.E.N. kept her from going inside the portal. "Five. Minutes." Nova had never seen the robot look so serious, and took his warning seriously. She simply stood at the entrance, twisting the sleeve of her light blue shirt.

Inside the mechanism, Jim and Silver were at a stand off, Jim holding a sword at the belly of the pirate captain.

"I like ya, lad," said Silver, his expression full of dark intentions. "But I've come too far to let ya in between me and me treasure."

An energy beam shoved them both off of the boat then, Jim sliding off a protruding platform and onto another, his hands barely catching a jutting piece of metal. Silver barely managed to stay onto the platform, his hand on the treasure boat. Morph flew by Silver's head, gibbering for him to glance at Jim. "What?" The piece of platform Jim used as a hand hold aligned with the wall, causing Jim to fall that much farther down. "But… But I…" With a heaving sigh, closing his eyes, Silver let go of the boat, watching as it flew toward a beam and shatter into smithereens. He grabbed hold of a falling Jim, pulling him onto the edge.

As they run for the entrance, Doppler flew up to them, barely able to keep the ship afloat, Amelia behind him screaming instructions.

"I know, I know, will you just let me drive?"

"Hey, Jimmy!" B.E.N. shouted, working with his own navigational systems and comparing it with those of the ship.

"Come on!" Nova yelled, reaching out to them and pulling them over the ship's edge. She hugged Jim briefly, then pushed him away roughly. "You're a gigantic idiot, you know that, Hawkins? I was scared out of my mind!" The planet shook, the ship with it. Nova almost fell on her face, hadn't Jim caught her by the arm and helped her back up. "I don't know what I would have done, if I had to wait another moment."

Jim only smiled then, instructed the Doctor to take them away.

As they flew away, a piece of giant debris launched itself onto a mast, causing one of the main sails to come crashing onto the deck. Jim held onto Nova and pushed her out of the way. When they looked up, B.E.N. was making some recalculations to the damage.

"Pistons failed to kick in, sir! Thrusters only at thirty percent capacity!"

Doc looked at them, shocked. Then he said to Amelia, but loud enough for all to hear, "That means we won't clear the planet in time."

"No," Nova muttered, standing up and praying again, only briefly.

Jim ignored her and began making some calculations of his own. He stared between a broken ignition and a piece of the ship. Then he made his move. "We have to turn around!"

Everyone glared at him as if he were crazy.

"There's a portal back there! It can get us out of here!" He attached the ignition and the piece of metal together with some loose rope from the broken sail.

"Pardon me, Jim, but doesn't that portal open up to a RAGING INFERNO?"

"Listen to the boy!" yelled Silver, quickly lumbering over to Jim. "What do ya need, Jim?"

"One minute twenty-nine seconds to planet destruction!"

"I need to attach these two pieces together."

Turning his cyborg arm into a blowtorch, Silver welded the two pieces together, watching them cool down quickly before helping Jim onto the freshly made solar surfer- minus the sail, of course.

"Now, no matter what happens, keep the ship moving toward the portal!" With one last glance at Silver, Nova and the crew, Jim kick-started the solar surfer and flew toward the portal.

"Well, ya heard him!" Silver yelled. "Turn her around!"

"Turn the ship around, Doctor!" Amelia belted.

"Aye, Captain!"

Doppler thrusted the ship toward the portal, almost knocking Nova over the edge. Silver caught her by the shirt. She smiled up at him. "Thank you."

"Jimbo wouldn't appreciate anythin' happenin' to ya, would he now, lass?" He winked at her.

They watch as Jim maneuvered around the broken pieces of the planet, coming relatively close to the portal. But then the ignition he'd been using gave out completely, and sent him tumbling toward the molten core of the planet.

"JIM!" Nova screamed, placing one leg onto ship's edge, as if she was about to fly after him.

Silver grabbed hold of her shirt again, pulling her back. "He has this, lass."

Her eyes teared up as she watched in horror. Silver stood behind her. "Come on, boy. Come on."

Jim spun faster toward the core, the heat starting to get to his head.

"TWENTY FIVE SECONDS!" announced B.E.N.

Quick thinking, Jim pressed himself against the rock, as if using it as a fire starter, and the ignition practically exploded behind him, giving him the kick he needed to get up and over the canyon he'd fallen in.

"THREE. TWO-"

The image of the portal changed, from an exploding inner core to that of the space port. They were pushed by the pressure of the planet's explosion through the portal and into familiar territory.

"BY THE HEAVENS HE DID IT!"


	13. Chapter 13

Sunlight

13: Home

High fiving Silver, Jim jumped off the solar surfer, meeting with the peanut gallery.

"Didn't I say the lad had greatness in him!"

Amelia, Nova, Silver, Doppler, B.E.N. and Morph were crowding around him, congratulating Jim on a job well done.

"Ludicrous, but effective. I would be proud to recommend you to the Interstellar Academy. They could use a man like you!" Words like that coming from hard, angry Captain Amelia brought a wide grin to Jim's face.

"Wait until your mother hears about this!" Doppler said, then paused, re-thinking his words. "Uh, but we'll leave out all the life threatening parts." Jim laughed and nodded in agreement.

B.E.N. ran up to Jim and wrapped his arms around the boy, picking him and up and throwing him around excitedly. "I know you don't like hugging, but get ready 'cause I'm gonna hug ya!" Jim not only tolerated the hug, but shocked the robot by being flung around and hugged back. "You hugged me BACK. I-I promised myself I wouldn't cry." B.E.N. wept dramatically, earning an eye-roll from everyone on board.

Everyone, that is, except John Silver.

Jim made his way into the haul, watching a sneaky Long John Silver detach a long boat from its ropes.

"You never quit, do you?"

Morph and Silver jumped at the sound of Jim's voice. "Ah, Jimbo! We were just, uh, making sure our last longboat was safe and secure!" To emphasize the lie, he loosely tied to the longboat back into place.

Jim came up and inspected the boat, untying then retying the rope more tightly. "There you have it!"

Silver chuckled. "I've taught you too well." They stared at each other before he continued. "Look, we'd like avoid being imprisoned. You see, little Morphy being in a cage…" Silver clutched Morph gently into his robotic hand. "It would break his little heart."

Jim was now the one snickering. He glanced between them and the lever, making a final decision. Pulling the lever down, the hatch slowly but surely opened up beneath them.

This relieved Silver. "What say ya ship out with us! Sail with us! Have no ties to anyone!" Morph turned into a tricorn hat and sat upon Jim's head.

"You know, when I first got onto this boat I would have taken that up in a heartbeat…" Jim took Morph off, who turned back into his original form. "But then, uh, I met this old cyborg. Who taught me… to chart my own course. And that's just what I'll do."

Silver looked sadly at the boy. "And whatta ya see, off that bow of yours?"

"A future."

They stared once again at each other, hurt and sadness lining their eyes.

"You're gonna rattle the stars, ya are." All Silver saw in front of him was a young man, once a boy, biting his lip to hold back his tears. Crawling into the longboat, he looked at Jim one last time, then looked to Morph. "Morphy, I gotta job for ya. I want you to look after this here pup." Jim looked genuinely confused, as did the pink blob. Morph chirped in protest. Choking up, Silver said, "Could you do me that f-favor?"

Morph flew to Jim's shoulder, and Jim took that as a sign to lower the boat.

"Oh, one more thing!" The pirate reached into his pocket and threw up some treasure. "This is to help your mother rebuild her inn!"

Jim caught the treasure, smiling meekly at the pirate. "Stay out of the trouble, ya old scalawag."

"Jimbo, when have I ever done otherwise!" And his boat flew off, his laughter trailing behind him.

"Jim!"

The boy had made his way to the upper deck, leaning over the railing, looking out at the stars. He turned around at the sound of the sweet soprano voice he'd gotten so used to at this point. Though what his eyes saw caught him off guard.

She'd changed clothes. Now she wore a camo green skirt that touched mid-thigh, a lime green over the shoulder long sleeved shirt and underneath that a brown tank top, still decking her black boots and waist-length black braid.

"Uh… hey, Nova. You, uh, changed."

"Yeah, girls aren't too fond of wearing clothes smelling of exploding planets." She shrugged nonchalantly, coming to stand beside him. "It's really strange."

He laughed at her mild attempt at humor. Then he looked away from her and at the stars once more.

She stared alongside him. "You know, when we first met, and I was to stay onto this boat until I had fully recovered, I would have loved nothing more than to be back out there, with the stars."

Jim glanced at her briefly. "And now?"

Her sea green eyes searched his blue hues. "My plans have definitely changed."

At first, he didn't understand. But as he kept staring at her, the meaning traced all over her face. He felt himself leaning toward her, and she mimicked his actions.

"JIM! JIM WE'RE HOME!" Doppler screeched at the boy from a floor below.

"UGH!" Jim rolled his head back and growled.

Nova laughed. "Go. Attend to your gatherers, young hero."

The RLS Legacy landed at the Space Port and Jim ran off to embrace his beautiful mother.

And so ended their adventure.

And so ends my story. At least this one. We continue onto Jim and Nova's adventures at the Interstellar Academy. Stay tuned!


End file.
